The Grand Rumble: De La Hoya vs. Páez

Date	July 29, 1994
Venue	MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
Title(s) on the line	WBO Lightweight title
Tale of the tape
Boxer Oscar De La Hoya Jorge Páez Nickname The Golden Boy El Maromero ("The Acrobat") Hometown East Los Angeles, California, U.S. Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico Purse $800,000 $175,000 Pre-fight record 13–0 (12 KO) 53–6–4 (35 KO) Age 21 years, 5 months 28 years, 9 months Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) 5 ft 5 in (165 cm) Weight 135 lb (61 kg) 134+1⁄2 lb (61 kg) Style Orthodox Orthodox Recognition WBO Junior Lightweight champion WBO No. 1 Ranked Lightweight Former featherweight champion
Result
De La Hoya wins via 2nd-round knockout

Oscar De La Hoya vs. Jorge Páez was a professional boxing match contested on July 29, 1994, for the vacant WBO lightweight title.^[1] The fight co-headlined the Top Rank–produced boxing card The Grand Rumble.

Having defeated mandatory challenger Giorgio Campanella to retain his WBO junior lightweight title on May 27, 1994, Oscar De La Hoya announced his intentions to vacate the junior lightweight title in order to move up to lightweight to challenge former two-time featherweight champion Jorge Páez for the WBO lightweight tile that had been vacated by Giovanni Parisi earlier in the year.^[2]

Páez, a veteran of 63 fights and having won two world titles and subsequently challenged unsuccessfully twice for the lightweight world title, was looked upon as possibly the toughest challenger for the young De La Hoya at the time, though De La Hoya dismissed the flamboyant Páez as "basically a clown, and that’s about it." As De La Hoya and Páez were fighting for a vacant title, and thus neither holding the lightweight title, the WBO held a coin flip to determine who would get the traditional champion's right to enter the ring last. Páez won the flip leaving De La Hoya reportedly "not happy" about having to enter the ring first. The De La Hoya–Páez fight was paired with an IBF super middleweight title fight between champion James Toney and challenger Charles Williams.^[3]

During the first round, De La Hoya took a more cautious approach, allowing the unorthodox Páez to become the aggressor. Though neither fighter landed much offense during the round, De La Hoya took the round on all three scorecards after landing a small flurry as the round came to a close. Then, early in the second round as Páez moved in close in order to hit the larger De La Hoya with a jab, De La Hoya caught Páez with a left hand that stunned him and quickly followed up with a multiple-punch combination that ended with a left hook that sent Páez down on his knees and then onto his back. Páez made no attempt to get back up and remained on the canvas for several minutes as referee Richard Steele counted to 10, giving De La Hoya the knockout victory at 39 seconds of the round.^[4]

The main event saw IBF super middleweight champion James Toney make the third defence of his title against No. 1 ranked Light Heavyweight contender Charles Williams.^[5]

The bout proved to be competitive, with Williams pressing the attack on the slick Toney. Toney was deducted a point in the 8th round for hitting after the bell. By the final round Toney's left eye had completely swelled shut, however he was to outbox Williams and with less than 30 seconds left in the fight landed an overhand right that sent the challenger down. Williams failed to beat the count, giving Toney a KO victory.

At the time of the stoppage Toney was ahead on all three scorecards, with two judges having it 106–102 and the other scoring it 105–103. HBO's unofficial scorer Harold Lederman also had Toney ahead 106–102.

Toney would claim to have been unwell stating that "I was sick today, I had the flu. I won’t be sick against Roy Jones."^[6]

The victory for Tony cleared the way for the much anticipated showdown with middleweight champion Roy Jones Jr. in November.

Confirmed bouts:^[7]

^Note 1 For WBO Lightweight title
^Note 2 For IBF Super Middleweight title

Country	Broadcaster
United States	HBO